Optimism

  Confidence and optimism are strange things. It seems like the natural tendency for the human mind is to lean towards that of negative thought. And it's amazing how the negative pattern of thinking can physically manifest itself in the form of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I was reminded of this recently at a local sporting event.

  The last several years my son has been playing youth league basketball. So far this season their team's record is 3 and 2 with 3 games to go. The last couple of games my wife and I noticed that whenever they play a team that may be slightly more physically intimidating, they appear defeated before the game even begins. And of course, as the self-fulfilling prophecy plays out, they inevitably lose. Today's game was altogether different though. The opposing team was of similar size and age, and they absolutely waxed the floor with them. Final score, 22 to 5! You could sense the zip in their step, and their belief in not only their ability to win, but their confidence in one another as well.....it was beautiful to watch.

  A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about an experience I had with Captain Rob Fordyce back in 2003. I hadn't spoken to Rob in close to 16 years, but that article turned out to be the impetus for us to get back in touch. One of the things he spoke about in our recent dialogue was the day I referenced at the end of the article where he went "0 for 30 in one afternoon". Rob elaborated on that day, detailing how frustrated he was that he cast a fly to 34 Tarpon, hooked 30, and boated none. Think about that for a minute....the will and belief you have to have to spend HOURS on the deck of a skiff in the blazing sun continually searching out fish, and continually experiencing defeat and failure. And its not like we're talking about Bluegills on a 2wt either. Knowing Robbie, I would guess that everyone of these were 75 pound plus fish. His belief that he could get it done kept him going until the very end, even if he did fail that day. Rob never told me what happened the next day, but if I was a bettin' man, I'd wager every dime I have on the probability that he went out the next day and hammered 'em again.

  I once heard the legendary tournament Bass angler Rick Clunn talk about how on a good tournament day he felt he could almost "will fish in the boat". Confidence in his intuition has become so integral in his psychological tacklebox, that he has gone so far as to study quantum physics and Native American spiritual studies to expand his profound belief in his ability to succeed. Its no wonder he has Rick has been referred to in several articles as the "Jedi Master " of angling.

  For the average fair weather fisherman, I'm not really even sure that the concept of "confidence" in their angling pursuits ever even crosses their conscious mind. The fact remains however that the one common tool in all high-performance individuals toolbox is confidence. It doesn't matter whether we're talking about an athlete, an artist, a wall street stockbroker or a fly fisherman, confidence in your ability to succeed is the key that unlocks the door to greater potential.

  I'd like to explore the psychological aspect of angling some more in future articles. I really believe this is the one area where the work is never really done....more to follow.

Hope you all have a great week,